Seeking Toddler's Growth Advice

If you are really worried, take him to the doctor. If the doctor isn't worried then you shouldn't be either, enjoy getting more wear out of his clothes. My son is 20mos old and is 31 inches tall and only weighs 20lbs. He isn't on the charts for his weight at all and barely for his height. He's just little. At a year he was 29 1/2" and 17lbs. Their weight/height growth normally slows down after 12mos. The doctor hasn't been worried about my son b/c he is developmentally hitting his milestones.

has the doctor ordered any blood tests? specifically, igh test. or maybe a bone age scan? my grandaughter pretty much came to a screeching halt at 15 months and then no more growth. turned out she has human growth hormone defiency and her pituitary is not only not working, but not all together in proper positioning. just this week she started growth hormone therapy in the form of injections e six days per week. she will be three years old on sept. 7th and is only 31.75 inches and 21 pounds. if it were me, (and i have been in your shoes) i would ask the doc to order the labs and if they come back low, as my granddaughters did, i would find a good pediatric endocrinologist to do further testing to see what is going on. it is not too bad of a process, and may actually releive your mind to have concrete answers. good luck!!

Is your pediatrician worried? My daughter didn't grow much between 12-24 months either and she was breastfed till 24 months. The pediatrician said she was on the lower range (below 5 percentile for height and weight) and there might have been a mistake on her height because she actually shrunk at her 18 month visit. But overall, she was healthy and he couldn't find anything to be worried about, especially since we (the parents) are on the short side. But every child is different so I would see what the pediatrician says.

Is your child getting enough variety, including fruits and veggies? Maybe try the infant vitamin drops in one drink a day, too.

F.,

There is nothing to worry about unless his pediatrician is concerned. Sometimes kids only have growth spurts around their birthdays. Mine do. Both my kids (now 2.5 and 5) only grown around their birthdays and yes it can be frustrating, but remember that kids will eat when they are hungry and grow when their body thinks it's time to grow. Unless they are showing delays in other areas of development, no need to worry. Although if it will give you peace of mind, go see the pediatrician. Hope this helps, God Bless.

Hi F.

Unless the Dr is concerned I wouldn't worry too much about it , all babies slow down in growth (weight & height) once they become more mobile , you also have to consider the family that he comes from , are you a family of tall well built people , short petite people etc , he comes from both of you and will take on genes from both sides.As long as he is healthy and gaining weight & height then he is doing fine.

Hope this is helpful

K.

Hello,

I have one large 13yo DS (5'6" and 160lbs), one average 11yo DS (4'9" and n91 lbs) and one petite 6 yo DD (48" and 46lbs). My point is they come in different shapes and sizes, my oldest never stops growing he needs new clothes/shoes every 6-9months. My DD eats everything in site and is not much bigger than she was at her birthday check up in DECEMBER. As long as they eat, and children are much better about knowing when to stop than adults, and the food stays down, dont worry about it

As long as there are no brain or developmental issues he should be fine, still talk to doc. The doc thoughy something was wrong with my son when I stopped nursing too. My husband was always the one taking him to appointments early on, he is 6'3. When I brought him in the next appointment, he said sorry. I am barely 5ft tall. He said my son was probably going to take after me!!! So maybe its something simple like maybe he is just small, not all people are going to be 6ft tall and 200lbs!!
T.

My son is about this age, and also stop taking the bottle since he is 16 months old. Since he has refused most milk products, and his growth chart has shown a curve. We also found out he has an anemic tendency, and shows some bags under his eyes. In addition he has had several bowel movements a day, that in my opinion are larger and more numerous than most toddler (I will not go into lengths here about all the full diaper disaster we have been having since March...). So after reaching what I felt was a dead point with his ped - he believed that there was not really something abnormal in all these signs or acted like if it was not worrisome - I ended up getting a aptmt with a dietetician. It was really helpful. I would suggest you do that. She was able to suggest some changes (more fibers, more meat which I was feeding my son but in unsufficient quantities), and ideas on how to reintroduce diairies in other forms. She also, after a second apointment, prescribed a supplement formula, some kind a vanilla flavored drink, that my son likes in small quantities. I am hoping that over the long run he will take more and more.
It is my suggestion..